Group pushes for alcohol sales countywide

Friday

Oct 12, 2012 at 2:42 PM

Poison. That's what some call it, the root of all — or most — evil.

BY NASH DUNNThe Dispatch

Poison. That's what some call it, the root of all — or most — evil.Others, they disagree. They say it's their right to consume that same "poison" and sell it to others if they so choose.The public sale of alcohol has long been an item of controversy not only in Davidson County, but communities throughout the state and nation.While the county's major municipalities — Lexington and Thomasville — approved alcohol sales in restaurants and businesses throughout the past two decades, remaining county areas are still dry. One growing group of citizens believes it's time for that to change and is poised to bring the issue of "liquor by the drink" back to the public light.Vote Davidson County Wet (Vote DC Wet), a group of citizens formed through Facebook in September, wants county citizens to have a say on the sale of alcohol in county areas."The question we are asking is, 'Why shouldn't it be left up to the people?'" said Jason Varner, one of the creators of the Vote DC Wet movement. "It's not an issue of whether or not I'm for or against alcohol. I'm for bringing it to the people to decide."Varner said the group wants to put the alcohol issue up for a vote, via a referendum. Earlier this week, Varner, a Thomasville resident, traveled to Lexington to ask the Davidson County Board of Commissioners to put the issue to a referendum vote, one of two ways a referendum can be established for a county issue in North Carolina.The second way a referendum can be established is a petition signed by 35 percent of the registered voters in the county, which is about 36,300 voters, said Ruth Huneycutt, director of the Davidson County Board of Elections.To commissioners, Varner said Davidson County and its municipalities are ready to realize the full potential of a thriving community and promising future, adding that tax revenue from the sale of alcohol is one of the many pieces to realizing that potential."It matters little whether each person supports or does not support the sale of alcohol," Varner told commissioners. "The crux of the matter here is that you in your capacity as county commissioners allow our voices to be heard by acting upon the power that only you hold and put the sale of alcohol to a ballot vote by the people. Inaction in your capacity as a county commissioner is suppression of our voices, and it is the mark of a tyrant to attempt to suppress the voice of their people."Varner spoke during the public comment portion of the commissioners' meeting, and the board did not vote or discuss his remarks.Denton, Wallburg and Midway are also dry areas in Davidson County. Denton has held votes on the sale of alcohol five times in the past 22 years, with town citizens turning down alcohol sales each time.In September 2002, after a real estate broker requested to schedule a referendum for alcohol sales in the county, Davidson County commissioners refused to take him up on the issue. Davidson County commissioner Larry Potts, who was a part of the board in 2002, said he will not vote to put the issue to a referendum vote. However, Potts, who said he has socks older than Varner, said he has no problem with voters deciding the issue if the petition requirement is met."I'm sure that if he brought the required amount of signatures, I'm sure he would get some consideration," Potts said.Davidson County commissioner Fred McClure agreed he would not vote to put the issue on the ballot."It is the No. 1 addictive drug in the U.S., and I feel that when I was sworn in, I was sworn in to uphold the laws and try to do what was right for the citizens of the county," McClure said. "I don't believe that would be the correct thing to do."McClure said he's heard all the arguments for and against. He said he's heard the argument about licensed alcohol bringing economic benefits to an area; however, he's also heard similar arguments that it is an equal economic detriment. "It will continue to be an issue, I'm sure," McClure said. "If there are enough people in this county that want it to be put to a referendum, that's the way to go about it."Liquor-by-the-drink in Davidson County has also been an issue tied to religion in the past, with churches making strong anti-alcohol pushes at any notion of a countywide, or townwide, referendum.Dr. Ron Baity, a pastor at Berean Baptist Church and the president of Return America in Wallburg, said in 2011, 23,000 people were arrested for driving while impaired in North Carolina. He said this year, in Davidson County alone, more than 540 people have been arrested for DWI or disorderly conduct.Baity also addressed commissioners at their regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday night."For every 10,000 people that are killed by alcohol, one person dies from a dog bite," Baity said. "And yet we license the alcohol and we shoot the dog. There's something drastically wrong in this society." Baity, who said he has been a pastor for more than 40 years, said he comes face to face with the consequences of alcoholism all the time."We run bus ministries and we pick up people from Davidson County, from Guilford County, from Forsyth County," Baity said. "We have to pick up the refuge, we have to pick up the garbage of alcoholic consumption. We know what happens when alcohol reins king in the home. We have to deal with it. And I'm telling you the worst thing Davidson County can do is to vote in liquor by the drink and make it more accessible for people to consume more of the poison that's detrimental to this society."Former Davidson County commissioner Larry Allen also spoke against countywide alcohol sales Tuesday."You hear a lot of arguments from those that are in favor of it, but there are a lot of things you don't hear," Allen said. "You've heard the word liberty. Try explaining the word liberty and looking a family member in the eyes that just lost a loved one by the hands of someone under the influence of alcohol. You're going to hear that it's the cure-all for economic development for Davidson County. I heard the same argument for several years here in Lexington. Guess what, we're still waiting."Allen said he does not believe Varner and Vote DC Wet will be able to attain the amount of petition signatures required.Varner disagrees."Although I respect both Mr. Allen and Mr. Baity, I cannot with sound mind consent to the philosophy they preach," Varner said. "The individual can make their own educated decision, and they do not need a pastor or government body to do it for them. Choose liberty, let them vote."Most surrounding counties allow alcohol by the drink countywide. Mixed-beverage sales are prohibited in unincorporated Rowan County areas; however, seven of the county's municipalities allow the sale of mixed drinks.Some citizens, like Chris Aldridge of Thomasville, say Davidson County is missing out on the economic and democratic advantages surrounding areas are providing its citizens. Aldridge, who also addressed commissioners earlier this week, is a member of Vote DC Wet."The idea that I could not serve alcohol in a bar is so absurd that I don't know if I'm in the USA or 'Fascist' Italy," Aldridge said. "My rights are inalienable. There is no legal or logical argument for keeping the county dry."For more information, go to "Vote DC Wet" on Facebook.Nash Dunn can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 227, or at nash.dunn@the-dispatch.com.